


Voire Dire

by beyondinsane



Category: Brothers & Sisters
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2008-03-21
Updated: 2008-03-21
Packaged: 2017-10-06 15:14:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,903
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/55031
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/beyondinsane/pseuds/beyondinsane
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Kevin Walker meets his former Law School rival.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Voire Dire

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Bamberrific &amp; Fedzgurl](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=Bamberrific+%26+Fedzgurl).



> In my mind, the role of Law School Rival is played by Jamie Bamber.

  
Kevin Walker took one last look in the mirror, straightening his tie. It was going to be a good day; he could feel it. He ran a hand though his hair one last time before putting his suit coat on and grabbing his briefcase. He had fifteen spare minutes, enough time to grab a Starbucks and review some of the finer points of his case prior to the jury selection. The case had been termed "racially sensitive", which indicated he had a tough job ahead. Kevin had always prided himself on his ability to pick out a jury; to play the delicate game of concessions and victories, of concealing his interest and intentions. It helped that he believed the man in question was guilty as sin; but the fact that the defendant was the son of a well known civil-rights activist presented just enough of a challenge to keep him interested.

He had never heard of the law firm representing the defendant; they had to be new or at the very least, non-local. Davis, Habbusch, and Patterson. Idly, he wondered which of the three he would face. Davis, he recognised, was an exile from Davis and Schmidt, which had folded last year. Unless Davis had picked up some serious talent, this case could turn out to be a cakewalk. Kevin sipped his coffee thoughtfully as he drove, putting the cup down momentarily to shift into park. He nodded to his acquaintances at the courthouse, pausing to wave at the court clerk in her office - she was on the phone, as usual. Everything was as he expected, and consequently, there was an extra spring in his step as he traversed the long, marble tiled corridor to courtroom seven.

Kevin rounded the corner, tossing his used coffee cup in the trash before approaching the group of suited men near the door. Judge Williams was shaking hands with a man facing away from Kevin, who increased his pace to hear the introduction.

"Edward W. Patterson, pleased to make your acquaintance." The soft voice said, lilting in a pleasingly British accent. That voice, coupled with that name, made Kevin stop cold. Surely not.

"Not the Edward W. Patterson!" He said, a little louder than distance would dictate. The man jumped, obviously unaware there was someone behind him. Kevin used the brief second before Edward turned around to paint his face in a mocking smile, his face the picture of friendliness save the hint of malice in his eyes.

"Walker...Kevin Walker, of all the pleasant surprises!" Edward said, returning the piqued expression.

"You two know each other! Well, that saves me breath, I suppose." Judge Williams smiled, missing the obvious glares the two men were casting at each other. "Did you meet abroad?"

"No, we were mates at school." Edward stated, meeting Kevin's eyes and holding them. "I came across the pond to study law and liked what I saw, so I stayed."

"I'm not sure we were "mates" exactly." Kevin interjected. "But we had classes together. The occasional party. His fiance was a friend of a friend of mine." He was eager to put distance between himself and Edward, but couldn't resist a barely concealed barb. "How is Lorraine?" He inquired, a wry smile twitching at the corner of his mouth. Lorraine, as Kevin knew, had left him in the middle of their last year when Edward's affair with an undergraduate became public knowledge.

"Married, but not to me." Edward sighed. "I did get an invitation to her wedding last month, but I was indisposed. Ah, I must pen a note to my assistant to have a gift sent. Thank you for reminding me, Kevin."

"Good for her!" Kevin said. "Too bad for you though, she was very pretty."

"Not my type, as it turned out." Edward arched an eyebrow at Kevin, an expression Kevin had always found annoyingly attractive. Kevin opened his mouth to reply, but Judge Williams was heading into the courtroom.

"You'll have to catch up after hours, boys. We have a long day head." He held the glass door open and the two lawyers followed him, trailed by their respective aides and courthouse staff.

Having his former rival anywhere near him would have been irritating enough, but to have to prosecute a case with Edward as defense council was near infuriating. He had nowhere to direct his anger, however, so he made do with ordering his aide out for water as often as he could without appearing unnerved. Unnerved was precisely how he felt as Edward skillfully analyzed each prospective juror, eliminating three candidates Kevin had liked by appealing to Judge Williams that they showed signs of racial bias, and a third on the grounds that she had been a victim of violent crime and was therefore more likely to side against the defendant.

"I hardly think purse snatching counts as violent crime!" Kevin had interjected angrily, chagrined by having another of his best potential jurors tossed out.

"What matters is that Miss Drake views it as a violent crime; as her ability to form an unbiased perception of my client's guilt is in question, not the severity of any offences acted upon her person. "

Kevin had to concede, and Miss Drake was sent out. It was so like Edward, always correct, always polite. Damn him. In law school he had been at the top of their class, and every professor's pet. It was the accent, Kevin was sure of it. People listened to him for five seconds and believed that he was smarter and more charming than anyone they had ever met. He was also handsome, cherubic even, and his slightly diminutive stature served him well. Kevin could see why he had chosen defense - his nonthreatening demeanor and angelic looks, coupled with his eloquence and charm made him easy to believe. People wanted to believe him. Kevin had secretly wanted to _be_ him, or to beat him. Either one. Edward had delighted in picking apart his careful arguments, redlining his papers with glee when they had forced peer review. They had frequented the same bars, all the law students did. Edward always treated their entire group, smiling benevolently and condescendingly, only Kevin was pretty sure he was the only one that noticed.

However, he failed to notice Edward smiling condescendingly now, lost in thought as he was.

"Mr. Walker?" Edward said, arching his eyebrow again. "What do you think?"

"Absolutely not." Kevin pulled himself back into his game.

"Why not?"

"Gut feeling." Kevin glared at Edward, defying him to disagree. Expecting him to disagree.

"Ah, well. I knew you wouldn't let me have that one. Can't blame a man for trying." Edward smiled again, and Kevin felt a strange jolt in his chest, a warming feeling he could only describe as loathing spreading to his limbs.

"I think we should call it a day. You two have thrown out over half today's pool." Judge Williams was clearly annoyed, the men had been brutal, denying nearly every possible juror in an effort to one up each other. "Perhaps a fresh start tomorrow, and a few new people, and we might be able to patch together a jury with people who don't offend your gut feelings, Mr. Walker." The remark cut into Kevin - he had known Judge Williams for years, and after a day with Edward he was ready to blame Kevin alone for an unproductive day. Judge Williams rose and left the room, leaving the assistant DA to clear the room of the prospective jurors.

"So...." Edward started, biting his lip.

"So, are you still dating little Marcia Bixby?"

"You knew about Lorraine and asked anyway" Edward accused.

"Of course I knew about that. Everyone did."

"Glad to see you are still using underhanded tactics to try and throw me off my game."

"Glad to see you are still dodging my questions." Kevin grinned, happy to have the upper hand for once. Edward stuck his hands in his pockets and bit his lip, looking down briefly before raising his head sharply.

"No. I am not dating 'little' Marcia Bixby." He said, tilting his head and pressing his lips together. "She developed an expensive habit and pawned a few of my family heirlooms to pay for it."

Kevin snorted. "So you traded in the fancy sports car for a more sensible, four door sedan?"

"Actually I changed brands and went for a hatchback." Edward said. "Like the one you drive, on weekends, when you think no one is watching."

"Oh." Kevin said stupidly. For a moment he wondered if Edward had gotten confused and actually thought he was talking about cars. But he didn't drive a hatchback himself, so Edward was clearly insinuating something else. He looked at Edward in surprise, visually asking for confirmation. The other man sighed.

"His name is Peter Habbusch. Not that it maters. We're partners in the law firm and not much else. But it was a heavenly summer romance."

"Oh." Kevin said again, not really believing what he was hearing. Edward was the biggest player on campus; women loved him and men wanted to be him. To hear that he had been closeted the whole time was nothing less than shocking. Though the more he thought about it...

"I'll take your atypical loss for words for genuine surprise. I suppose you never noticed such obvious signs of my interest as "dating someone else to make you jealous" and "being adversarial with you for in the hopes of eliciting an emotional response." Edward hurriedly filed a few papers in his briefcase, stopping to arrange the corners of his folders so they didn't crease. He hazarded a glance at Kevin, who was opening and closing his mouth as if a witty response was only seconds away. "Must I literally ask you to join me for a drink, or will you be otherwise occupied doing your goldfish impersonation this evening?"

"Drink! I would. Yes, I mean. I do drink occasionally, and I would have one at the same time as you, and in the same location. So if you want to call that joining you, then, yes. I would and I will." Kevin took a deep breath. This was a bad idea.

They had driven to a bank parking lot across from Kevin's office building separately before Edward joined Kevin in his S-class. Kevin had spent his fifteen minutes alone talking to Sarah on the phone, hoping she would talk him out of it. Far from it, she had laughed and said she had known all along that Kevin had a crush on him. "He's all you talked about during Spring Break."

"That's cause I _hate_ him."

"That's cause you wanted to _sleep_ with him." Sarah retorted.

"Oh, sorry. You're breaking up. Static. Gotta go!" Kevin hung up just as Edward opened the car door. "Hi." Kevin said a little breathlessly.

"Hello. Fancy meeting you here." Edward grinned as if he had made a very clever joke; which suddenly seemed to Kevin a very endearing trait rather than an annoying one.

"Where do you want to go?" Kevin said, trying hard to appear in control. "Temperature comfortable?"

"I'm a trifle warm, but I'll manage." He stifled a laugh as Kevin fiddled with the controls. "Honestly, it's probably just nerves. I wondered if we would cross paths once I moved here, and sure enough, my first case is against you. You had no idea I was in town?"

"No, no." Kevin had both hands on the steering wheel, feeling a little impatient to get the car moving. He _had_ to get the car moving, it was imperative.

"You might have noticed the billboard."

"What?"

Edward pointed up, to a large "Davis, Habbusch, and Patterson" advertisement, facing directly towards Kevin's office. Edwards face was plastered on the left, 15' tall. "A coincidence, I assure you, that it is so near your workplace." Kevin was just about to turn the ignition when he felt a hand on his thigh, a light touch intended to emphasise his honesty. It was gone as quickly as it had began, but left a scorching sense memory. He turned towards Edward.

"You know, the very fact that you _know_ that's my office is a little incriminating."

"It is rather damning evidence. Entirely circumstantial, it would never hold up were you to prosecute me. However, I could hardly blame you for wanting to press charges." He licked his lips, and Kevin turned the ignition.

"Where are we going?" He asked again, a hint of desperation in his voice. "I need a drink."

"Why don't you show me around? I just moved here, you could give me the tour. You know, your favorite bar, your favorite restaurant, where you work, where you live." Edward clicked his seat belt as Kevin threw the car into drive.

"I thought we had established that you know where I work." Kevin said wryly, trying not to punch down on the clutch. Edward clearly didn't do subtle outside of the courtroom. It was a miracle that he had remained closeted as long as he had. Although Kevin knew a few men that were like that; they lost all talent for subtlety when it came to their personal lives.

"Well, cross that off the list."

"Do you really ... want to see where I live?" Kevin said, stopping at the threshold of the parking lot and the street.

"If you'd like to show me."

Kevin closed his eyes for a second before checking traffic and turning right, down the street that would take him home. "Yeah. I think I would." He heard himself say, though he could think of a thousand reasons why he didn't, not really. Edward must have sensed his unease, for he began chatting about what he had been doing with his life for the last five years, why he had moved to LA, and how he was finding life there so far. Kevin kept watching the ghost of his reflection in the windshield, unable to find the courage to steal direct glances at him. He took to insulting him in his mind to pass the time and to keep himself grounded, but the pleasant lilt of Edward's voice, the easy charm he exuded, the magnetic self confidence held him spellbound. _Arrogant prick. Self-absorbed bastard. _He almost snorted - he'd sound like Scotty if he'd say what was on his mind aloud, except Scotty always leveled those particular insults at him. Not that Scotty ever meant them; and Kevin found himself not meaning them either.

There was something about getting into an elevator with someone that Kevin had always found vaguely exciting. It was as if, for a few minutes, the passengers were completely isolated and anything could happen. Of course, almost nothing interesting ever did happen, but his stomach flipped just the same as the doors slid closed with just the two of them inside.

"I'm going to be terribly forward." Edward said apologetically, setting his briefcase on the elevator floor with an unceremonious thud.

"What else is new?"

"Shut up, you gorgeous thing."

And before Kevin could bristle at being called a gorgeous thing, Edward's lips were pressed against his, and they did not part until the chime announced their arrival on the twelfth floor.

Hands trembled against an unyielding lock as hands pressed against yielding flesh.

"Hang on a sec, let me get this..." The tumbler finally turned over, and Kevin swung the door open just wide enough for the two of them to slip inside before Edward slammed it shut.

"So this is where I live..."Kevin began conversationally, as if showing his apartment to some distaff cousin.

"Show me where you sleep." Edward would clearly not be distracted.

"Well you can't say I didn't try to resist."

"Yes, I'll tell everyone what a proper lady you are."

"Do that and I just might be one." An empty threat, for sure. Kevin slid off his suit coat and walked towards the bedroom door, pausing momentarily to watch his former adversary eye him hungrily. Clearly, the torch had been burning for a long time.

Edward stalked forward, and leaned against Kevin where they stood in the door way.

"Still hate me?" He asked, blue eyes full of light from the cityscape behind him.  
"A little.

"Good. Then this will be especially delightful."

***

Sharp fingernails raked across his back as his chest pressed against Edward's. It was just like he had never let himself dream, a scene that had played itself out on the fringes of his consciousness. In bed, as in court, the men vied for dominance, tumbling over and over, growing more and more rough. In the end, it was Kevin who submitted. Some things never change.

***

Kevin woke alone, as he knew he would. He had heard Edward leave and had not bothered to wake up and say goodbye. At least he left a note, Kevin thought, spying the post-it on the counter.

_See you at Voir Dire. Try to pay closer attention today.  
Fondly,  
E.W.P_.

_Arrogant Bastard._ Kevin thought to himself, but smiled as he noticed Edward's jacket still laying on the couch. Apparently not arrogant enough for the old "I forgot my jacket at your place" routine. He tucked the gray coat under his arm and grinned at his reflection in the mirror. If he wanted a second invitation, he'd have to work harder than that.


End file.
